Aviation has all the time fascinated individuals, however Sébastien Léopold by no means imagined that his two youngsters would at some point develop into pilots like him.
“It wasn’t my dream, however it’s freaking enjoyable, for instance!” he throws.
The daddy, 53, was privileged to be alongside his daughter Stephanie, 27, as she took her first Air Transat flight earlier this month. The Montreal-Toulouse journey will stick with you without end. “Dream job!” exclaimed Stephanie on Fb.
Stéphanie Léopold and her father Sébastien on their first flight for Air Transat on August third. Photograph courtesy of Stéphanie Léopold
Sébastien assures that he has not made any particular effort to encourage his youngsters to observe in his footsteps. “After I got here dwelling, I didn’t arrive in mild plane. I didn’t say, “It’s nice to do that for a dwelling!” No, in no way.”
The considered changing into a pilot preoccupied 26-year-old Charles-Antoine as a young person. “It’s not unhealthy that I had the braveness in third secondary college: that’s what I’ll do in life,” he says.
“You didn’t inform me!” Sebastien replies, laughing.
A Cessna that has served us nicely
In 2014, on the age of 17, he started his flying classes on the Aéro Loisirs college in La Macaza, within the Laurentians, on a Cessna 150 that belonged to his dad and mom. 5 years later, his sister would do the identical.
“Two pilots have been educated with the aircraft, that was good,” says Sébastien fortunately.
Stephanie’s journey was a bit extra winding. When she was little, she dreamed of changing into an astronaut. She lastly selected biology when she enrolled on the College of Montreal.
“I preferred the bio, however I noticed what occurred subsequent,” she says. His brother had began coaching as an airline pilot a couple of months earlier. Like so many younger individuals, she questioned if she had made the correct selection. After one semester she left the college to start out her pilot coaching.
“I didn’t see it coming in any respect,” Sébastien swears.
The subsequent few years is not going to be simple for Stéphanie.
“There are tougher instances while you don’t see the tip of the tunnel,” she says. I needed to commit myself absolutely to my training, which meant I didn’t have a whole lot of time with my family and friends.
It criss-crosses the American sky
Her first job as a pilot took her to western Canada and the USA, the place she flew a small aerial plane.
“I flew north to south and south to north till I ran out of gasoline!” She laughs. Stéphanie then spent 4 years as a pilot in northern Canada.
For his half, Charles-Antoine, after working for Air Inuit for 5 years, accomplished his first flight with Air Transat final November, additionally alongside his father.
Vacation spot Cancun: Charles-Antoine Léopold (proper) on his first flight for Air Transat, together with his father Sébastien, in November 2022. Photograph courtesy of Charles-Antoine Léopold
“You go to the bathroom and while you come again you open the door [du poste de pilotage] And your son is sitting on the correct, that’s humorous!” Sebastian factors this out.
One factor is for certain: his two youngsters don’t remorse their profession selection.
“After I go to work, I’ll have enjoyable,” concludes Charles-Antoine. I all the time have enjoyable. Flying the aircraft as such is tremendous cool. Additionally, while you arrive in Europe, for instance, we go to one another, eat at good eating places and have a very good time.
Nonetheless few ladies and younger pilots
- Variety of pilots at Air Transat: 675
- Proportion of feminine pilots at Air Transat: 5% (world common is lower than 4%)
- Proportion of younger individuals: 20% of Air Transat pilots are below 35 and 51% are below 45
- Wage of a pilot at Air Transat: from $60,000 (on entry) to over $225,000 (for a commander on the prime of the profession ladder)
- Variety of flight hours required to use for a pilot place with Air Transat: 1500 (in comparison with 2000 hours beforehand)